1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a flexible tubing for use in a cassette dispenser for a diaper or similar waste disposal device. More particularly, the present invention relates to barrier films used for flexible tubing in such cassettes.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Diaper disposal devices have become popular for the convenient and sanitary disposal of diapers and related waste. A conventional diaper disposal device has a pail that serves as a storage chamber accessed via a closable lid and, a cassette positioned in the pail and having a tubular core with a length of flexible tube stored in the core. The diaper disposal system operates by depositing a soiled diaper into the pail, rotating the core, and twisting the flexible tube to create a seal above the diaper. A second diaper may be disposed of by opening the lid, inserting the second diaper, and pushing the previous sealed diaper further into the storage chamber. A new seal is created by twisting the tube above the newly deposited diaper. The process can continue until the pail is filled. Consequently, the device stores the discarded diapers in a series of individually wrapped packages in the storage chamber. Each package is separated from adjacent packages by twists in the tubing. Such a packaging and disposal system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,813,200, assigned to Playtex Products, Inc., the assignee of the present invention. A cassette for use in a diaper disposal system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,934,529 to Richards et al., also assigned to Playtex Products, Inc.
Diaper disposal containers, in addition to aiding in the discrete and sanitary disposal of human waste, also provide a method of reducing malodor by containing the waste in sealed packages of flexible tubing. The flexible tubing currently employed in the art is formed of a substantially air-impermeable material such as Formosa E905 or Formosa FPC. However, the odor reduction capability of a tubing formed of Formosa resin is limited by its permeability. Over time, a significant amount of odiferous gas permeates through the tubing material into the environment. Less permeable materials have not been employed in the art because they are ill-suited for the conversion process in which film from a roll is inserted into a cassette. Less permeable materials are brittle and the insertion process creates splits or openings in the film. Such splits are axially formed, as a result of the molecular orientation of the film during the blowing process. Also, the rigidity of less permeable materials renders them ill-suited to the twisting required for operation of a cassette.